So far we have chartered
the history since the formation of the club, up until the
end of the 90/91 season.

We would be grateful to
anyone who can add to anything written here. Apart from
pointing out any inaccuracies, we would be pleased to
receive contributions so that this history can be
"fleshed out" even more. For that reason, the
details on this page are likely to be changed as more
information is unearthed.

Tragically, the summer
of 1991 saw the untimely death of Kevin Durham, a
midfielder who had joined from Wycombe the year before.
He suffered a heart attack whilst holidaying in Spain.
The Durham Suite in the clubhouse commemorates him at
Barnet.

Playing With the
Big Boys

The team did not change
much during the close season, but joining the "big
boys" proved an expensive affair. Ground
improvements included a segregated away terrace with its
own facilities, more turnstiles, extra seating and the
famous Underhill slope being levelled off in one corner.
There was also the small matter of a £150,000 bond,
which had to be paid over while work was being completed
on the new clubhouse.

The season started with
much anticipation. In true Barnet style, they suffered a
bizarre home defeat of 7-4 at the hands of Crewe. Barry
Fry said of the game: "It was a carnival occasion
and Barnet were the clowns. My defenders must have
thought tackle is what they go fishing with."

Another bizarre result
soon followed with a 5-5 draw against Brentford in the
League Cup. Unfortunately, in the replay (which Barnet
lost 3-1) Gary Phillips was seriously injured. Mark
Flashman was still the reserve goalkeeper so a new goalie
was needed. Andy Pape joined from Enfield, an experienced
keeper who had had one league game twelve years earlier
with QPR.

His first two games were
clean sheets, the second being a 6-0 thrashing of
Lincoln. This was followed by further favourable results
that left Barnet up with the best of them. Barnet were
then drawn against Enfield in the second round of the FA
Cup. Enfield had since been relegated from the Conference
and Barnet won comfortably, 4-1. This was followed with a
2-0 win over Mansfield, who were top of the table.

Atkinson Offers a
Million

Boxing Day lived up to
its expectations, with a 3-0 defeat at the hands of
Crewe. Barnet were third in the table and the team had
settled very well into their new division. Top scorers
were Gary Bull and Mark Carter with 19 and 17
respectively. Other key players were Kenny Lowe, Gary
Poole, Roger 'Harry' Willis and Paul Showler. Aston
Villa's new manager, Ron Atkinson, made an approach for
Bull and Willis with sums of one million pounds being
mentioned. This time, Barry had his sights firmly on
promotion and refused.

Barnet were drawn
against second division Charlton in the FA Cup, but ended
their cup-run with a 3-1 defeat. Barnet's form dropped a
bit after this and Fry looked around for a couple of
players. Terms were agreed with two players, one of whom
was Ken Charlery, but Flashman refused to foot the bill.
Instead Dave Barnett was bought from Kidderminster along
with a couple of loans from Spurs and Arsenal.

Barnet could not repeat
their earlier successes, with a further blow in the form
of Aldershot retiring from the league. Barnet had claimed
six points from them, which now counted for nothing. It
should be noted that Aldershot were not the only club
with problems at this point. Northampton had sacked their
manager and nine players as an economy measure, while
Halifax, Doncaster, Maidstone and Scarborough were not
much better off. (Since then, Maidstone have folded, but
were re-born in 1992 and are now in the Bass Brewers Kent
League while Doncaster and Scarborough have also been
relegated to the Conference. Halifax have been escaping
relegation like Houdini ever since, and recent reports
show that they have quite serious problems.)

A Place in the
Play-Offs

Barnet managed to scrape
seventh place, thus a place in the Play-Offs. The first
leg was at home to Blackpool. Although Barnet played an
excellent game, they were unlucky with the woodwork.
Although they won 1-0, they could have won by more,
booking their place in the Wembley final.

A frustrated Stan
Flashman stormed into the dressing room, called the team
a disgrace and sacked Barry Fry. This was followed the
next day by Flashman denying everything and claiming that
Fry was "the best in the league." Flashman was
becoming unpopular on the terraces, with speculation that
either he or Fry would go in the summer.

There were also
allegations that money was owed to Fry and the team, and
money needed to strengthen the team was not forthcoming.
On top of this, the return leg at Blackpool did not go
Barnet's way, losing 2-0 (2-1 on aggregate. Blackpool
went on the win the play offs.).

Next Instalment

I have caught up with
myself so there is no 'sneak preview' this time. Touch
wood, I will have the time (and inclination) to write up
the 92/93 season by next week, which includes, of course,
our best season ever, and promotion to Division Two...